The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death
by NarcolepticThestral96
Summary: Entangled in the lives of so many, an invisible soldier, a beautiful paradox, an enchanting puzzle. Who is this mysterious girl? What roll will she play in the upcoming war? Join the Marauders and co as they try and try again to piece together the enigma that is Nerezza Ivory Peverell.
1. She came in the night

She came in the night.

At the time the seven year old boy, sentenced to trash duty was fuming. Oh how he loathed this place. All the stupid children, with their snot and uncleanliness, asking such stupid questions, crying pathetically for their mummies and daddies. Tom never knew his mum or dad, all he had was a name. Tom Marvollo Riddle.

The only thread of sanity in his miserable life was the game he, like so many other orphans, played. A game in which he invented parents of nobility and aristocracy that would one day take him away from this hell.

Tom always felt different. He had cold, sometimes cruel mannerisms and relished in the fear the other children felt around him. He marveled in his separateness from the others. None of _them_ could talk to the garden snakes; none of _them_ could make things shatter in fits of rage. Tom was different. Tom was special.

Tom was also being punished, trash duty for a month, simply for breaking stupid, chubby Harold's arm. Muttering vengeance under his breath and heaving the rotten bag of used diapers and spoiled food toward the ominous Iron Gate, Tom paused as he saw something lurking in the corner of his eye. Beyond the gate Tom saw a man, entirely made of shadows; quiet as a whisper, lower a small bundle to the ground.

"You there," Tom called out. "What business do you have here?"

But the shadow man simply ignored him.

"I said," Tom began, arrogance laced in his voice to mask his apprehension of the mysterious man, "What business do you have here?"

This time, the man, if you could call it that, lifted its "head" causing Tom to take a step back in fright. The man had no face. The man was entirely made of shadows! And yet despite having no visible face, Tom could not shake the feeling that the shadow man seemed to stare him with no eyes.

But before Tom could react the shadow man simply disappeared as if it had become the night itself.

Abandoning the trash Tom ran as fast as his seven year old legs would carry him. "Wait," he yelled. "Take me with you!"

Though Tom feared the shadow man, it was obvious that the shadow man could make magic just as Tom could, and after all this time he wanted answers.

As he opened the gate Tom flailed his arms around, trying with all his might to grab the man who had turned into night itself… That was until he felt himself trip.

Grumbling Tom picked himself up and looked around trying to identify the source of his clumsiness, until his eyes fell upon the bundle the shadow man had left at the gate.

Hesitantly Tom crept toward the small bundle, almost losing his nerve when he saw it twitch, but nevertheless continuing forward until he found his hands slowly unwrapping what the shadow man had left behind.

Two eyes looked up at him. A small head barely covered in wisps of dark hair, the child couldn't have been more than a few days old. The two stared at one another, both seeming to take the other one in. In the back of his mind Tom questioned why the infant wasn't crying, weren't infants notorious for their waterworks? But the infant simply blinked up at him unfazed.

Tom was the first to break the staring contest, noticing a small piece of parchment on the infant's chest. Picking it up hesitantly tom unraveled it and examined the three words.

**Nerezza Ivory Peverell**

Instantly Tom, infamous for separating himself from everyone and everything, felt a genuine human connection to this baby girl. He too was simply left with no family, no records, nothing but his name.

Greedily, seven year old Tom picked up the baby girl. Once again the girl did not cry, but simply yawned and nuzzled deeper into his arms, making something strange in Tom's chest feel lighter. Still marveling in the child Tom began walking towards the orphanage. Half way toward the door one of the nursemaids came rushing out.

"You boy," she scolded. "What the bleeding hell is the trash still doing in the middle of the pathway? I ought to give you a good thump on the head for that, you stupid boy! Any child with functioning brain cells is capable of taking out the trash! What makes you so bleeding above it all?"

Tom, who'd usually be in cold fury at this point played little mind to the scolding of the foolish nursemaid. "This baby was left at the gate by a man made of shadows," he explained still in awe of the tiny human now asleep in his arms.

The nursemaid opened her mouth to scold him once more for such a nonsensical story until her eyes fell upon the bundled up infant and gasped.

"Lord in heaven, she must be freezing, the wee thing, give her to me," she said reaching for baby Nerezza.

It only took a split second for Tom to react. Pulling the infant close to his chest he glared daggers at the now cowering nursemaid.

Tom was all fury and vehemence as he shielded baby Nerezza from the stupid woman.

"Mine," he hissed.

Taking a moment to compose himself once more Tom continued up the walkway, and slammed the door shut with a loud bang paying no mind to the trembling woman whom he had left outside in the cold.

Tom had never liked sharing his toys.


	2. A promise to a little girl

Chapter Two

Ever since the day he had held her in his arms, she had been his. The staff had nearly keeled over in disbelief when Tom, notorious for refusing to even touch other children, came in from trash duty with an infant in his arms, let alone one he was so possessive of.

On the very first night Tom lay Nerezza next to him on his small bed and the two merely stared at one another. Tom, curious and eager to learn the secrets she held, and Nerezza completely mystified by the very first person her eyes had ever looked upon.

Some of the nurses had assumed it was just a phase; that Tom would tire of the child once the real work began, but Tom shocked them all, feeding, burping, and changing the infant without complaint and refusing point blank to let anyone else assist in Nerezza's care.

It didn't take long before the Nurses, already frazzled and overworked, simply gave in and entrusted Tom with the responsibility of all things Nerezza Ivory Peverell.

She was Tom's obsession.

Each day he grew fonder and fonder of the child. As a baby she hardly cried, she was rarely fussy, and extremely compliant. Each milestone was a personal accomplishment for Tom, her first crawl, her first step, and one day;

"Tom."

Tom froze, _did she just_, "Tom," she said again, clear as day. Before he knew it he had picked her up and spun her around the room listening to her giggling in delight, "Yes," he said grinning ear to ear. "Tom, I'm your Tom."

Nerezza was a very fast learner, and spending nearly all her time around Tom adopted many of his mannerisms. She was cunning and calculating, and had a charm others simply could not say no to. She was incredibly intelligent, naturally mature, and though she never considered herself above the other children as Tom did, she found she could never connect with them on the intellectual level that she could with her Tom.

Tom absolutely relished in Nerezza's devotion to him. He took pleasure in his ownership of her, took pride every time she charmed the cook into giving her extra desert or mastered her first song on the piano. Spectacularly by the mere age of three she was able to read certain words and write certain letters. She was Tom's greatest possession.

But now and again the pair did not always see eye to eye.

"Tom?" she asked him one day as he was reading.

"Hmm?"

"Why do you take things from the other children?"

Surprised Tom looked up from the book. "Well because I want the things they have." He said, as if it was the simplest matter in the world.

"Mrs. Cole said that taking things without asking is called stealing."

Sighing Tom closed his book, walking over to little Nerezza, looking her in the eye, "Nerezza the other children aren't special like you and I. It's okay to take things from our inferiors."

To this Nerezza nodded and Tom took this as a gesture of her compliance, patted her cheek affectionately and continued his reading.

But Nerezza still felt troubled.

For it was obvious to her that she and Tom could do magic things, but she could not find the logic in how doing magic things justified the two of them being able to take the other children's belongings without their explicit permission.

Speaking of magic things as Tom watched Nerezza grow he was delighted to find that she, like himself could do magical things that the others could not.

Tom awoke to Nerezza humming by the window. This in itself was not unusual, as a matter of fact it was quite the common occurrence, but when he opened his eyes he saw no Nerezza by the window. Tom sat up slowly, fixating his gaze on the spot in which he could hear Nerezza humming and yet could not see her.

"Tom, what is it?" she asked, automatically sensing that he was troubled.

"Nerezza," he said his voice laced with anxiety. "Why can't I see you?"

"I wanted to surprise you," she said reappearing, causing Tom to jump. "I wanted to be like the shadow man and turn into the night, so I did."

Tom simply gaped at her.

"Tom?" she whispered, now looking guilty. "I'm sorry if I scared you." Nerezza felt ashamed, she could feel lower lip trembling. She was not a child who cried often, if at all, but there was nothing she hated more than disappointing her Tom.

But Tom merely walked over, took a knee, and tipped her chin up so that she was looking him in the eye.

"You are magnificent." He told her.

Nerezza beamed, not noticing the gears spinning around in Tom's head as he created scenario after scenario of ways to in which he'd be able to use Nerezza's ability to his advantage.

This was not the only ability she seemed to possess, though invisibility was by far the more glamorous of the two.

Ever since she was young Nerezza would see people fall asleep in her mind. She dreamed of a woman being pushed down a flight of stairs and falling asleep, of an elderly man clutching his chest in pain and sleeping. It bothered her that sometimes the various people would fall asleep with their eyes open, their orbs turning a pearly, milky white, people weren't supposed to sleep like that. When she brought it up to Tom one night before bedtime he became very still.

"Nerezza," he began gently. "I think that you are confusing sleep with death."

Though Nerezza did not know what death was she did not like the word.

"Death?" she asked.

"Nerezza, you know how our heart thumps and our lungs help us breathe?"

She nodded.

"When you die those things don't happen anymore and your body becomes very still. It's like falling asleep and not dreaming anything at all. And Nerezza… you don't wake up. You stay like that forever. Sometimes it hurts very much. Sometimes it's slow. And it can happen to anyone."

Nerezza slowly started panicking, a rare occurrence for the usually composed child. "But Tom I've seen so many people in my head! Everyone I've ever met! Are you telling me they don't wake up?"

Tom was surprised Nerezza had never mentioned this before but then again she had obviously just assumed that the people in her head were merely sleeping.

"Nerezza what do you mean you look at people and see them die?" Tom asked eyebrows furrowed in concerned.

"When I meet someone I see them die in my head. Sometimes right away, or when I fall asleep that night, but sometimes it times it takes longer. Most everyone I see looks much older than they look now, but Tom I just saw Hannah Brown in my head a few nights ago and she looks about the same age she is now! Her hair is even the same length!" Nerezza was definitely panicking now.

Tom grabbed Nerezza and sat her on his lap as she shook with fear, stroking her hair in an attempt to calm her down. "Nerezza," he began. "I need you to tell me exactly what you saw happening to Hannah Brown."

Still shaking Nerezza explained to Tom that Nurse Podrick was caring for an ill Hannah, when suddenly the girl began coughing and coughing up bright red blood causing more nurses to come in and panic over the sickly girl.

"And then she stopped coughing Tom. I thought she had just fallen asleep, but I think she... I think she died."

Tom wracked his brain trying to think of anything having to do with Hannah Brown. She was a plain looking girl around Tom's age, which at the time was around 9, almost 10. They were never friends. Tom had no friends, but she was always polite to him and Nerezza, and now that he thought about her properly she had looked very sickly the last time he had seen her.

"I'm sure it's nothing," Tom said, trying to calm the nearly hyperventilating child. "But why don't you stay with me tonight just in case."

Nerezza just nodded, still extremely frightened and allowed Tom to tuck her into the bed, Tom climbing in himself after doing so. As soon as his head connected with pillow Nerezza rolled close and clung to him in fear, shivering. Tom stroked her hair a smile on his lips until she drifted into sleep.

Oh how powerful he felt she clung to him.

The very next week Hannah Brown fell ill, and three nights later Nerezza and Tom listened in absolute horror as the young girl coughed and coughed until… until silence.

Neither Tom nor Nerezza said anything for what felt like hours.

"Nerezza?" Tom asked, finally breaking the silence. "You said everyone you meet dies in your head sooner or later?"

Nereezza simply sat not saying anything but Tom pressed on. "Have you… what way… how do I die?"

Tom held his breathe in anticipation as Nerezza looked up at him with haunted eyes. "You don't."

Tom swore he felt his heart stop.

"I've never seen you die, Tom… I think you live forever."

Nerezza then for one of the first times since infancy started to sob. "Tom I don't want you to die. I cannot imagine a world without you! I need you. Never die. Promise me you'll never die!"

To this the nine year old rushed over to little Nerezza and grasped her face in his hands. "Never. I swear to you I will never die!" Tom insisted and he clung to the small child stroking her hair until her breathing returned to normal.

"I love you Tom." She told him, and Tom stilled. He did not like that word, it made him feel vulnerable, weak, and yet at the same time powerful, her loyalty to him making him feel stronger, braver. So Tom merely shrugged it off.

"Come on little one, you can sleep in my bed again tonight."

Nerezza complied, as she always did when Tom was concerned, and fell asleep quickly, but Tom stayed awake that night contemplating everything. For Tom had always feared death above all else, and hearing Nerezza hypothesize his immortality made him feel like king of the world.

From that moment on the determination to achieve immortality, to never live in fear of death, possessed him, after all he had made a promise to a little girl, and he had no intention of breaking it.


	3. Satisfied with the ciaos

CHAPTER 3

Tom did not like sharing his things, and he glared as he watched the new boy Billy Stubbs laughing with his Nerezza.

Tom knew that it was not Billy that Nerezza was interested but the pet rabbit, the boy had brought with him. Normally Tom would feel a sense of pride whenever 3 year old Nerezza turned on her charm, but today Tom did not like how 7 year old Billy was looking at his little Nerezza, how she giggled and complimented him even if it was just a farce of hers in order to get to play with the rabbit.

But when Nerezza tucked her hair behind her ear causing Billy to grin foolishly, Tom decided he had had enough, storming over making Billy step back in fright.

"Come Nerezza." He said, taking her little hand possessively. "Let's go play with the garden snakes." Tom had always enjoyed it when he and Nerezza would go out and converse with the snakes. Nerezza did not speak the language but Tom had taught her certain words and would translate what she did not understand.

"That's okay Tom," Nerezza said sweetly, not picking up on the fact that it was more of a demand than a suggestion. "Billy was just about to let me play with his rabbit."

Tom turned to glare at the younger boy, he wanted to hurt him, wanted nothing more than to inflict infinite amounts of pain upon him. Billy gulped, looking horrified.

"Very well," Tom said icily. "Have your fun."

Nerezza grinned and grabbed Billy's hand as Billy practically sprinted away in fright.

The next night, just before bedtime there was a scream and the sound of children crying. Smirking he got up to examine the spectacle, gutted and ripped apart, Billy's rabbit lay hanging from the rafters. Feeling triumphant Tom glanced at Billy who yesterday looked so pompous and arrogant; now sobbing so hard snot came from his nose, satisfied with the ciaos Tom walked back into the room, waiting for Nerezza to join him.

He awoke to no humming that night, and glancing over to the window he saw no one, and yet he knew her well enough to know that was not the case.

"Come out little one, I know you're there." Tom said.

Nerezza materialized but did not move, still staring lost in thought out the window.

Tom did not like the silence, "Nerezza?" he asked hesitantly.

Slowly she turned to look at him her ice blue eyes, sad and disappointed. "Did you do it?" she whispered.

"No," Tom said quickly, feeling an uneasy feeling squirm inside of him.

Nerezza merely looked at him with the same sad eyes and nodded.

"Come, stay with me tonight," Tom said trying to be extra kind, patting the spot next to him.

But Nerezza merely shook her head, "I think I'm going to sleep in my own bed tonight." He felt a pang in his chest as she walked to the door.

"Goodnight Tom." She said in the doorway not turning around.

"Goodnight Nerezza," he whispered miserably.

Tom tossed and turned all night, in no way regretting what he had done, yet haunted by the disappointment in his little Nerezza's eyes.


	4. Tom's word was law

CHAPTER 4

It appeared Nerezza was either too young or too trusting to hold a grudge as it only seemed to take a few days post-Billy'- rabbit for all to return to normal between Tom and Nerezza.

That winter was cold. And the orphanage was overcrowded. Despite the rules about coed rooming, Nerezza was permanently moved into Tom's room via his charm and persuasion. Each child was only provided one blanket, and though Tom and Nerezza seemed less affected by the cold than the other children, they used it as an excuse to push their beds together to combine the two.

Tom would _never_ admit it aloud but he always slept better with Nerezza cuddled next to him, safer, mind you even happy. He was not deaf to the gossip of the staff, whom all bickered and trying to understand the relationship between the two children. The more religious nuns and teachers found the relationship disturbing; a 3 year old girl and 10 year old male sharing a room, holding hands, always so wrapped up in the other, but many of the teachers and staff wrote it off as merely platonic, the two were so close simply because they identified the other as there family.

And yet both theories were wrong, thought Tom one night as he lay awake stoking the sleeping Nerezza's hair. He did not consider himself a brother nor father figure to the young girl, nor did he have romantic interest in the 3 almost 4 year old. She was simply his, his to take care of, to call his own. She was the living, breathing, powerful byproduct of Tom's hard work. Their relationship thrived off not of a familiar or romantic bond but out of complete and utter devotion to the other. Trust, and dependence was a two way street. They were each other's everything.

"No," Nerezza whispered into his chest. Snapping out of his thoughts Tom pulled Nerezza close. For the winter had been a brutal one. 5 children had passed already, Nerezza and Tom had tried each and every time to alter what Nerezza saw in her head, but despite the two's best efforts death claimed each and every one.

Looking down at Nerezza Tom knew something was different this time. A thin layer of sweat covered her forehead despite the chill, and she started trembling thrashing back and forth.

"Nerezza, wake up," Tom said, trying to hide the worry in his voice, she didn't so much as open her eyes. He began shaking her. "Nerezza wake NOW." He said franticly. Was she sick? He thought, No, she had never been sick before, something was wrong in her nightmare, very wrong.

"NO!" Nerezza bolted up in bed, suddenly awake, gasping in the cool air, eyes horrified… that is until they fell upon Tom and softened.

Like magnets he held out his arms and she moved into them, clutching him for dear life. "Who shall death be expecting next?" Tom asked, he never feared the answer, for he knew it would never be his own.

She was silent for a moment. "I don't know Tom, I've never met her."

Tom stilled mid stroke of her hair. Before this point Nerezza had only seen the death of those she had met before. "Perhaps you're going to meet her," suggested Tom.

"Perhaps… but Tom that isn't the strange thing, there was a boy there. He saw me, Tom, perhaps he's like me!"

"Tell me," Tom commanded.

"Well I was inside a house, it was old and dark and I was looking out the window. There was a girl, my age I think walking by, she waved. Her hair the most magnificent red I had ever seen, and I remember feeling… something strange in my chest, something nice, something warm. And then there was screaming. I felt fear. I went to go hide. A man and a woman were arguing. He started hitting her. He took a bottle and slammed it into her head. She fell to the ground. Still alive. He called her mean names as he walked away. I stayed hidden away for a long time. The woman got up and started crying but I didn't leave my hiding place to comfort her. She went away for a while and came back with a rope and a stool. I didn't understand at first until she put her head through a loop and kicked the stool out from under her. Her face just turned red, and red, then blue, then... nothing. I just sat in my hiding spot, I've never been so frightened. I didn't want to see. Then the man found me. He was drunk and crying and mad. He beat me, beat me over and over, and all I could see was the woman, still hanging and colorless. And I just lay there, staring at the woman, even after the man left. Eventually I got up, I was feeling week so I had to grab onto a table to stand. Above that table was a mirror, and in that mirror was a reflection, a boy with dark unwashed hair and a large nose. His eyes were sad, his face fairly bruised. He was my age as well, I believe, but then the boy, the same boy looking at himself in the mirror stood behind me in the refection gaping. And I turned around in shock, everything went black, but he was still there. And I was me again. We just looked at each other for a long time. I came to realize that everything I had just seen I had seen through his eyes. It was like I was in his mind, in his memory, I was him. That never happens Tom I always watch from the corner, never behind a person's eye, and no one has ever seen me before! I was afraid, but also curious. I tried to touch him but he backed away frightened. I tried to say it was okay, that he needn't be afraid of me, but even though my lips were moving words never came, only silence. So I smiled at him, hoping to convey that I was friendly. I slowly crept toward him and though still cautious he did not back away. I grabbed his hand. It felt warm. He looked up, surprised and smiled at me. Then I woke up."

Tom did not know what to make of this story.

"Do you think he was like us Tom? Magical? That there could be more like us? Even a whole world we never knew about?" Nerezza asked excitedly.

"Compose yourself Nerezza, of course I've considered the possibilities, but now's not the time to delve into them. Shut your eyes Nerezza, we'll talk in the morning."

Frowning Nerezza hunkered down once more, mind still whirling, she wished to voice more of her thoughts aloud, but as always, Tom's word was law.


End file.
